Well, the idea is certainly interesting, but it seems to be a hotlist of
"most popular pieces written before 1945", with the exception of a few.
There are so many glaring omissions from this list!  Where are Ligeti,
Berio, Birtwistle, Norgard, Xenakis, George Benjamin, Thomas Ades, many
others.  And of the composers who could have proved enlightening, the
Phillies choose the easiest works, ie.  Webern Im Sommerwind instead of
the Orchestral Pieces, Copland Appalachian Spring and 3rd Symphony instead
of the Orchestral Variations or Connotations, Schoenberg's Gurrelieder
instead of the Variations, etc.  The season, in fact, doesn't seem to
be much different than regular programming except that there isn't the
standard Brahms symphony, Beethoven Symphony and Piano Concerto, and
Tchaikowsky's Violin Concerto.  And what's with so much Peter Schickele???

I think a more interesting idea would be if each orchestra in the US played
a season made up only of pieces they have never played before, from any
period.

Cheers,

Marcus Maroney
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